He Became The Most Insane Emperor Of All Time [EN]: Chapter 109

“What do you think, Igrit?”

They were beyond harassing rangers and guerrillas; they even raided a Demon camp in the middle of the night and killed their leader.

Apart from the heroic tales spreading, I told Igrit the information we had seized from there.

“Judging from what’s written in this document… it seems they’ve found it.”

“Found what?”

“The place where Kalibal sleeps.”

Her answer didn’t make me think Kalibal, whom I saw 3,000 years ago, was just taking a nap.

“According to legend, Kalibal defeated a Demon Archduke who threatened the North… no, all of humanity, and suffered fatal wounds.”

“So, he fell asleep? To heal his wounds?”

“I don’t know. He vanished after that. Some say he died, others say he ascended. Or… that he fell into eternal slumber to heal and return.”

I couldn’t know how the man I saw in Isborg, the one who fought to protect the Queen, ended up like that.

But what mattered was the information in the seized document.

“Whatever his end, they found the place related to that legend. The Demons…”

“This is more important than a civil war.”

“Maybe.”

Even though this world is an otherworldy medieval land, it’s still a world of pure fantasy.

If Kalibal really became a god, and if he left behind a powerful force in his tomb.

How could it be a good thing for the Demons to get their hands on it?

“But we don’t have time to worry about that now. Sadly.”

“……”

Igrit’s expression hardened.

Because she had to admit it.

The Harsgaard army is advancing. Guerrilla tactics buy time, but there’s a limit to how much time we can buy by dragging things out.

Eventually, a siege will begin.

“Let’s think about Kalibal after we settle this.”

Now was the time to only think about the war at hand.

* * *

“The evacuation of the residents is complete. Everyone has been evacuated into the castle. However, as you know…”

“There must be quite a few complaints.”

The siege had begun.

Military preparations were quite good, but the problem was the civilian aspect.

The residents who had taken refuge inside the castle walls weren’t exactly favorable to the loyalists.

Of course, in this medieval land, no one openly expressed their dissatisfaction… but it was a potential problem.

“If the Northern Archduke were awake at times like this, it would be helpful.”

“……If the Archduke were here, things wouldn’t have gotten this bad.”

“Well, that’s true. More importantly, what about the enemies?”

“As you can see, they’ve surrounded us.”

I listened to the now compliant Northern knight of the loyal faction and looked at the enemy camp visible beyond the castle walls.

A force more than twice the size of ours.

It wasn’t just the number of troops; their elite status was also impressive.

With the Demon forces present, they were not opponents to be taken lightly.

“But they don’t seem to be planning a direct siege. They’re just using catapults while maintaining the siege. It’s a standard siege tactic.”

The fierce siege warfare seen in movies from my past life is actually a bit exaggerated.

Most sieges involve surrounding and starving the enemy.

But even that standard tactic had its own nuances.

“How long can we hold out? Conversely, how much food do the enemies have?”

“Good news and bad news, which would you like to hear first?”

“The good news.”

“The rebels probably don’t have much food either, especially with such a large army. Meaning they can’t maintain the siege for long.”

“The bad news?”

“We don’t have much food stored either.”

At that, I snorted as if scoffing.

We’re all going to starve soon anyway, so what siege are we even talking about?

Well, it was only natural, given the impoverished North.

Koo-oong!

“Another bad news is that their catapults are a threat.”

“It certainly looks that way.”

What I saw in the distance was a giant, likely controlled by the Demons, throwing boulders larger than those thrown by ordinary catapults.

Each time it struck the castle walls, the walls vibrated greatly.

If it kept getting hit, the walls wouldn’t hold, and unfortunately, the North, with its many rocky mountains, had plenty of rocks to throw.

“At this rate, they’ll break through the collapsed walls before we starve. What should we do…”

“Well, just keep watching for now.”

“What-”

Whoosh-

[Deploy Wings of Light]

[Imperial Soul Stage 1 Unlocked]

I immediately spread my Wings of Light, leaped from the castle walls, and flew into the sky.

“I, it can’t be…”

“An angel… an angel sent by the guardian deities of the Empire.”

Even the Northerners who still held Kalibal beliefs were admiring me like Imperials, but the sound faded as I flew alone towards the enemy camp.

Shoosh! Shoosh!

“These are even tougher than the Elves.”

As I got closer to the enemy camp, javelins were flying quite accurately.

It wasn’t just one or two sporadic javelins; a barrage was pouring down as if forming a fire net.

They probably hadn’t anticipated a superhuman being charging alone, but their response was remarkably calm and quick.

Swish! Clang! Crash! Whoosh!

First, I dodged or parried those javelins with my sword, and when that wasn’t enough, I scattered flames of purification to burn them away.

It wasn’t too difficult since I had done it against the Elves before.

Thanks to that, I was able to reach the first catapult giant I had targeted.

-Gwoooooh?

“Be born as a good animal in your next life.”

Slash!

With a single strike of the Holy Sword imbued with chilling aura, I beheaded the giant.

That’s one… but there are still several left.

“Chains of Curse, bind the sacrifice!”

“He’s targeting the catapult beasts!”

Clatter!

“Tch, you’re not going to make it easy for me.”

But the enemies’ counterattack continued.

Black chains made of cursed magic were trying to bind me.

Whoosh!

Clatter!

“Oh! Dark God! Accept my faith!”

Stab!

Compared to spirit magic, which was fatal to the flames of purification, black magic showed more resistance.

Moreover, if they ran out of magic power, they mercilessly sacrificed themselves or someone else to replenish it.

Even amidst all that, the javelins thrown by the Northern warriors were fierce.

“This is tougher than against those Elves.”

Unlike those guys who were practically abandoned by the arrogant Spirit King, these guys were fighting with active support.

It was difficult to face these guys as a one-man army like I did back then.

No matter how much I sniped black mages with Shadow Blades and scattered flames of purification, the Demons stubbornly continued to fight.

What was fortunate was that the rebel Northern warriors were throwing javelins but seemed somewhat passive.

“I guess I have no choice but to put in a little more effort.”

[Imperial Soul Stage 2 Unlocked]

[Deploy Armor of Souls]

[Mana Heart Output Amplification]

[Current Mana Heart Output 300%]

Kwaaaang!

I caused an explosion and soared back into the sky.

Now flying at an even faster speed, I targeted the other catapult beasts as if a meteor was falling.

-Gwoooooh!

Slash!

“Grab him! Kill-”

“You’re the ones who are going to die.”

Clank- Chwaaaaa!

The frost flames generated by Imperial Soul Stage 2 were making the aura even more intense and sharp.

With a single draw of the sword, dozens of enemies were cut down at once.

Immediately after, I dodged the pouring counterattacks and flew up again to target other beasts.

The goal was to neutralize their catapults and make them crash into the castle walls.

Slash! Chwaak! Kkyaaaak!

I continued to rampage and take care of the beasts.

[The deployment time limit for Imperial Soul is approaching.]

[Exceeding the limit may result in severe rebound.]

The limit was approaching.

“I guess I’ll have to stop here for today.”

But since I had done this much, there was no need to be impatient, so I decided to leave immediately.

“Are you trying to escape, Emperor!”

-Kwarururu!

“……!”

But then, Harsgaard, riding an Ice Drake, ambushed me as I was trying to escape.

He failed to bite me, but the small dragon’s teeth tore the Wings of Light.

[Wings of Light damaged, 5 minutes required for repair.]

“Oh. There’s nothing uglier than stopping someone who’s leaving.”

“You were an uninvited guest in the first place, Emperor.”

“Well, that’s true.”

Thud-

“I’ll entertain you for just 5 minutes. Come at me.”

After that, no words were needed.

I had the Holy Sword, and he had two Rune Axes.

As soon as we aimed at each other, we charged at each other.

And we began to fight each other like beasts.

To kill, to bite, as if we would starve to death if we didn’t devour the other.

Clang! Kaang!

“Hoo…… Hoo…….”

“Haa…….”

As we fought like a storm colliding with each other, both Harsgaard and I were exhausted.

In the meantime, Demon soldiers were gathering, but the Wings of Light had also been repaired, so there was no problem escaping.

“Are you going to run away?”

“There’s always another day? No need to rush. More than that……”

I took out the parchment document I had seized earlier from my chest and threw it at him.

“Take a look if you’re interested.”

“……?”

“Then, see you next time.”

How would he move after seeing the contents of that document?

I couldn’t know, but I threw it at him with the thought of testing the waters, and I immediately flew back into the sky.

I returned to the cheers of the loyalist warriors and finished the day.

* * *

“Lord Warlord. Are you alright?”

“Ah, I’m fine. What about the warriors?”

“None of the warriors died. However, the Demons suffered quite a bit of damage. Especially the catapult beasts……”

“Well, it’s fortunate that they were the only ones who suffered.”

Harsgaard said that to his aide, who was asking about his well-being, while looking at the document the Emperor had thrown at him.

“Lord Warlord, what is that……?”

“……They asked me for cooperation before, saying they found Kalibal.”

“Didn’t you ignore them?”

“Yes, I refused because it seemed like they were just digging through ruins and trying to instill vain hopes… but it seems they found the real thing.”

And what they proposed—‘We will give you the power of Kalibal’—must be partly true.

“Then… shouldn’t you get that power? Lord Warlord….”

“No, what are you saying? What do you take me for, a black mage?”

“I, I’m sorry.”

He had joined hands with the Demons while rebelling, but he was a Kalibal loyalist [a follower of Kalibal’s teachings].

He didn’t have the Demon-like idea of gaining power from Kalibal’s ruins.

The aide who had suggested the power to him had said it with the meaning that if the power was going to fall into the hands of the Demons, he should take it.

“That’s right. We must not let Kalibal’s power fall into the hands of the Demons.”

“That’s right. But I don’t want to use that power in this trivial civil war. The right choice is to prevent them from getting what they want.”

“Lord Warlord…….”

“Besides, settling things with that guy is a priority.”

Protecting the secrets of Kalibal is the next thing.

However, it was necessary to make arrangements.

“Even if it’s not me, so that he can stop them.”

Fortunately, the Emperor was someone who would help the North even if he won.

Then, he might also protect the legacy of the legendary Kalibal; he had a small hope.